Dec 26, 2010

This popular French chicken dish, made with vinegar, shallots, and white wine is quick and easy to make. Red wine vinegar gives it an intense, tangy flavor, that mellows as it simmers. Shallots are similar to onions, and are always a staple in my house along with onions and garlic. They can transform any ordinary dish and make it extraordinary. The ease of this dish makes it perfect for a busy weeknight dinner.

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday. I had a wonderful Christmas surrounded by family. Most of my gifts were cooking related. My husband surprised me with new Rachel Ray cookware, I got some fun kitchen gadgets and lots of cookbooks. I'm so excited to try some of the recipes from my new books and give them a makeover to share with all of you!

This recipe was adapted from Mediterranean Clay Pot Cooking by Paula Wolfert. I used skinless boneless chicken thighs, to keep it lean and replaced the créme fraîche with low fat sour cream.

In a medium saucepan, combine vinegar, honey, 3/4 cup chicken broth and tomato paste. Boil about 5 minutes, until it reduces down to about 3/4 cup. Remove from heat.

In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat and add chicken. Cook on both sides, until brown, about 6-8 minutes. Remove chicken and set aside. Add the shallots and garlic to the skillet and cook on low until soft, about 5 minutes. Pour the sauce over the chicken, add the wine, remaining broth salt and pepper. Cover and simmer about 20 minutes until tender.

Remove the chicken, add sour cream and stir into the sauce (if sauce dries up, add more broth). Boil a few minutes then return chicken to skillet. Top with fresh parsley.

133 comments
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My dear this looks divine!! Thanks for all you do to support us in the WW community. I gotta say I don't envy you having to update all of your recipes for the new plan! Hope you have a wonderful New Year!!

I made it for New Years dinner, everyone agreed it was delicious! I actually left out the cream altogether, when I tasted the chicken after the simmering it was amazing, so I thought there was no need to add more calories to it. Thank you!

I made this for dinner tonight... it was OMG good. My Uncle who's a potroast and potatoes kinda guy cleaned his plate! My five year old didn't like it though, she's not super finicky but I wasn't surprised.I served it with baked sweet potatoes and steamed broccoli. Perfect

made this tonight, and it was really good- great flavor, the meat was so tender it was almost a liver consistancy (i mean that in a good way- chicken can come out stringy as everybody knows, so that is TENDER). was wondering, Gina, if you had any thoughts about using the extra sauce?

Hi Gina wondering if i can make this ahead of time-- am hosting a dinner party for 8 people this weekend and company usually arrives 2 hours before we eat so hoping i can make some or all of the recipe ahead?

This was the best chicken recipe I've tried and the first recipe from your site. I can't tell you how much I appreciate what you are doing for those of us that love to cook and need to be healthier. I was so afraid when I started weight watchers that I would be eating bland food and making the same thing over and over. This site is a Godsend! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

This was the first recipe that I tried from your site. It was absolutely WONDERFUL. I have never received compliments from my husband like I did when I put this on the table. The next night we had the Asian Chicken Drumsticks -fantastic. Thank you so much for what you do.

Amazing! I use many of your recipes in my weekly meal gameplan and everyone else loves it too! This particular recipe may be my new favorite (just don't tell the pork carnita recipe this one bumped down a notch!)

I made this Saturday night and it was deeeelish. I used thighs but cut a breast in half and tossed in. I didn't find it rubbery, but it was a little dried out. Next time I will double the sauce. I had rave reviews the whole way around.

Wonderful! Made this Saturday and had the left overs tonight. Warmed it in foil while roasting veggies. So easy and just as good tonight. I am passing your blog on to all my WW and other cooking friends. Thank you Gina!

I made this yesterday with "mom's stuffing lightened up" and a salad, and I have to say, it was one of the best meals I have had in a very long time, weight watcher's or not! I love this site and so many of the dishes! Today, I am making skinny Italian meatballs for my very picky Italian husband, who has never noticed the difference = ). Thank you for all of the great recipes!

I just found your site today, and I've been drooling over your pictures and recipes ever since. I was wanting to try this dish for supper (been trying to find a good use for some thighs my hubby picked up on accident) and was wondering if it would matter if I just used onion powder instead of the shallots? Do you know approximately how much to sub? We don't do onions in any form here, so I just use onion powder if I can't leave it out altogether...

Hey Gina. Can u make this the day before and reheat it ya think. ? My family has not been around and I've have the chicken in fridge for a couple days already. It was planned for yesterday's dinner but hubby was late, then today's dinner but both son and hubby out again. Dam! I wanna eat it. Looks so good!! Tnx

I made this on New Year's Eve (day after I found your blog); my husband and I practically licked our plates. When I told him it was WW-friendly, he insisted I was lying! LOL I joined WW a few weeks ago and your site has been a great resource for delicious and flavorful recipes. Thanks!!

Super delicious. I made it with boneless, skinless thighs as my grocery store didn't have any bone-in. Very good flavour, and easy to make. I served with a yam and sauteed brussell sprouts. Thank you, Gina.

I made this and couldn't remember where I got the recipe from. When talking about it with my family, they said I had to figure out where the recipe came from, as it was soooooo good and they wanted it again. After thinking about it, I figured it came from your site. So after doing a search for chicken thighs on your site, I found it. It's now printed out and place in the "keeper" cookbook! I added mushrooms and the dish was delicious!

I'm wondering if I've missed a step or misunderstand something. Want to make this tonight. It says to remove pour the sauce over the chicken (that we've set aside" and then add the wine, broth, salt and pepper. I'm guessing I'm putting the chicken back in the skillet to do this? Am I not getting something?

Confirming that breasts end up a little rubbery on this. It looked so good, I wanted to try and I didn't have thighs. The sauce was good, but I can definitely see why it would be a good idea to stick to thighs.

Gina...You have a gift! Yet another superb dish. My kids weren't as crazy as this as they were with other ones but my husband and I sure were! We fought over leftovers for tomorrow. I doubled the garlic again and felt all the cooking times were spot on. Will definitely make this again.

I am making this for dinner tonight. I bought some white wine from the liquor store. They told me what I need for a dry white wine. Once I pour the wine liquid in to the dish the alcohol will evaporate, right? I have kids, so I just need to make sure no alcohol will be in the dish. Silly question I know.

I had no idea what a dry white wine was. I went to the liquor store, and they showed me what it is I was looking for. I spent about $10 on a good dry white wine. I got home, and started cooking. Once it was time to pour in the wine, I took the packaging off the top, and sure enough realized I needed a cork screw. I threw mine away a year ago. So, I went to the store to get a cork screw. I spent about $8 on one. I got home all the while my chicken is waiting to have the wine added. I pop screwed that screw in the cork, and start pulling up. The cork screw broke off in the cork. I said screw it, and added more broth to the chicken because I didn't have white cooking wine, and had it without. $18 later, and no wine. I was extremely frustrated to put it lightly. Oh well, it was still delicious! My poor Husband and kids didn't get to try it yet. My Son had basketball, and I have a zumba class. So, the kids took off to basketball without being able to eat because it wasn't done. I put it in the fridge, and will heat it up for them when they get home. I will make this again.... with the wine next time!

I always have wine in my fridge for cooking. I made this tonight too, I started making it, sauce was cooking, took the chicken out of the fridge and realized it was bad, so I threw the chicken out and franticly looked through my freezer and found chicken breasts, defrosted and used that instead. It was ok, but not nearly as goo as the thighs since I had to cook it for less time to avoid rubbery chicken. See, I have the same problems you all have from time to time!

Gina, That is funny we both had a frantic night last night with making this dish! LoL! :) I'm sorry you had a frantic one as well! I look at it now, and it just makes me laugh at how frantic I got because of the last minute rushes, and errors. This dish is seriously one of the best dishes I have ever made. It is a keeper. I'm going to make it for my parents, and also my Husband's parents soon! I can't wait to try it with the white wine! I just need to get a new cork screw, and get in to the bottle :) Question: Can any white wine be considered a dry white wine? I'm not sure what a dry white wine is. I just had the person at the liquor store show me the bottle I need. She really didn't explain anything to me. Also, how long does it stay good for in the fridge? Since alcohol doesn't freeze, can I put it in the freezer? Thanks for your wonderful recipes! You have made mine, and my families life, so much more tasteful, and healthy.

I made this dish last night and it was absolutely delicious. It was gourmet and low fat too. i knew it would be good, but this was beyond good. (Not that I doubted you as I have made a few of your other delicious recipes, but this one blew them out of the water!)

Gina, this is restaurant quality!!!!! You have a fan for life. Thank you for taking the time to share. It really and truly is appreciated.

PS - I know people have asked about a cookbook and it is something you would like to do in the future. But have you ever considered solicting donations via pay pal? I would GLADLY make a donation for your time and effort.

Gina - I have been a lurker on this site for at least 6 months and hadn't gotten around to trying any of your recipes yet. Well last night I finally got over that hurdle and I absolutely loved this recipe! My husband loved it too, and trust me that's saying a lot. I usually can't tell him I'm cooking "light" or he'll automatically scrunch up his nose. But I'm positive he couldn't even tell.

I served it over jasmine rice with a side of brocolli. This will be added into my dinner rotation immediately!

Thanks for all your hard work....because you are surely making my life a lot easier :)

I just made this dish and I have to say amazing. I did how ever have to make the dish with white wine vinegar because I thought I had red and I didn`t want to do back to the grocery store. It worked out great still

Hi Gina. i started weight watchers about a month and half ago and your recipes are awesome. I made this dish tonight and followed it exactly. It came out really good! If it wasn't for you, i would have quit weight watchers a long time ago.

WOW, I stumbled accross your blog yesterday and the recipes looked fabulous. I tried this chicken dish, served with your cauliflower fritters last night and both recipes were very very tasty! Thank you, I have now subscribed to your blog and will be visiting regularly for recipes and inspirations.

Thanks for keeping things healthy! I was very impressed with the first two recipes i tried, so can't wait to try some more :)

this is 3 of 3 recipes of yours that i used this week ( i used the turkey tacos and asian turkey meatballs) and they all were out of this world and not difficult to make for midweek meals after long hours at the office! my hubby has loved every creation and is sitting here next to me as I leave you a comment to thank you! :) thank you!

This recipe was fabulous. It had so much flavor- hard to believe it was only a few WW points! I am new to your site and am loving all of the recipes! I am making your turkey and black bean enchiladas tonite!

I made this last night and it was very good! I did add some baby bella mushrooms to it - my hubby said that it reminded him of Chicken Marsala. I used white meat chicken and just added it a little later once the sauce reduced some and it was really good. thanks!

I really like this recipe and have made it many times for company and family much to their delight. I do puree the sauce after about 15 minutes or so and let it finish up nice and smooth before the sour cream. The kids like it better when it's not chunky! Love it over couscous with some steamed veggies on the side! Thank you!

Funny that I happened to make this on FLAG DAY, as I am desperately trying to tie that into this post but all I can come up with is. ..VIVE LA FRANCE!! This dish was DELECTABLE and has single handedly, finally, solidified to my family that I am, indeed, FRENCH!!! I added portabello mushrooms even though was an extra step in cooking to sautee first. I confess, I used supermarket cooking wine because, since I am French, I would only have ended up drinking the rest of the bottle thereby negating all the work you have done delineating out the calorie count AND any time I am logging in doing cardio this week. Next time I WILL be using better wine although this came out FANTASTIQUE with supermarket wine!! I anxiously await more French inspired recipes as my inner frenchwoman is begging for more!! Will bring leftovers to work and put on top of steamed cauliflower MMMM MMMM!!!! Merci beaucoup and AU REVOIR!!!!!

So delicious! This turns out wonderful each and every time and we're all fighting for the left overs even on the third day! :) Delicious with some nice rice and about any veggie under the sun or a fresh salad in the summer!

Fantastic recipe! Gina, you have made cooking low-fat fun and interesting for me again! Thank you for sharing your talent for cooking with us. Dieting is frustrating enough, but with recipes like yours at my fingertips....I'm looking forward to making up my menus!

Just got done with dinner & I have mixed feelings on this one. My first attempt with using vinegar as a key ingredient. I did make modifications based on what I had on hand. Used a fall harvest vinegar from a winery, fresh garlic from the farmers' market, and onions instead of shallots. My sauce didn't reduce as much I had expected. Did add baby bella mushrooms as others had stated. Sauce was very tangy; and it kept drawing me back in with every bite. Served it with steamed veggies and a wild rice blend. Will try it again, following the recipe as written to see if it was just my choice on vinegar. Thanks Gina....you keep eating healthy fun and easy to stay on plan!

Made this the other night and it was delicious! I used to hate cooking with chicken thighs (they grossed me out) and so I only used chicken breasts but now I'm starting to realize how much softer and juicier chicken thighs are! Great recipe! Will absolutely be making this again!

Three for three for Skinny Taste (my roster so far is: Peruvian Chicken with Aji Verde, Balsamic Chicken with veggies, and now this) and all three have been great! I did this one exactly as written (but cut in half for fewer people) and it was super tasty and so easy. Thank you!

This was fabulous! I added a few more cloves of garlic and I will definitely make it again. I served it with sauteed Brussels Sprouts from your site http://www.skinnytaste.com/2009/10/sauteed-brussels-sprouts.html#more . My husband also thought it was really good!

This recipe is GREAT! I added another shallot because I love shallots!! I didn't even need two chicken thighs because I had a side of the roasted cauliflower and a bit of rice and I will so full!! Yummy!!

I made this tonight. Wow! It was so good. I served it with bread, although the rice is a good idea, as is pasta. I also made roasted brussel sprouts. Great meal!! I love when things come together so perfectly.

Seriously SO good!! I simmered this for probably about 2 hours and used thighs with the bone in. Served it over brown rice and mushrooms - the sauce is so tasty. Hubby's friend raved...didn't tell him it was "healthy" :)

I just made this wonderful dish tonight with my boyfriend. He happened to come home as I was reading this recipe and we just happened to have all the ingredients. It was entertaining to cook this one together, if a little confusing at times. In the end we figured it out and it tasted amazing. The sauce is a perfect compliment to the rich dark meat of the thighs. The only alterations we really had were adding some cornstarch to the sauce to thicken it up and we used red wine instead of white... just because it was what we had. As college students, we usually end up cooking on a budget, but because we're both cooks, we hate to do "college food". Thanks for this great recipe, it was definitely a new and interesting (and tasty!) idea.

P.S. We served it with garlic mashed potatoes and a fresh spinach salad with feta and scallions.

Made this last night for my husband and I. We don't like chicken thighs and all I had were thin sliced chicken cutlets. I dipped them in a little flour and sauteed them. Then I made the sauce separately. The only difference is I didn't leave the chicken to simmer in the sauce for 20 minutes. I simmered the sauce alone and added the chicken in near the end. My hubby LOVED this sauce. He couldn't stop raving about it. I have to say, it probably tastes different with chicken thighs but even with the cutlets it was fabulous. We've made so many of your recipes and my husband just says "let's find something new every night from that website!" lol. Thank you Gina for your fabulous recipes!

I am making this right now but I must have made a mistake.. It tastes WAY too much of vinegar :( I even put a little less in than what the recipe said... I have no idea what I did wrong.. I'm trying to boil it some more to get the vinegar to burn off (hopefully) otherwise I'm afraid it will be inedible :(

I think I did something wrong too...I had WAY more sauce than the pictured. I simmered for 20 mins, thinking that the sauce would reduce, but when I read "add more chicken stock of your sauce burns down" I knew I must have messed something up.

I've re-read the recipe like 10 times and cannot figure out what I did wrong - I thought I'd followed the directions to a T!

Once we tasted it we knew I messed something up - we've never had anything of yours that tasted less than amazing...and this was just ok.

This might be my favorite recipe of all, and I have made a TON of them! OMG soooo good. I had a ton of sauce, and I only used 5 thighs. I served with couscous and poured the sauce over that. AMAZING. This morning I had 5 eggwhites scrambled and I heated up some of this sauce and poured that in the eggs. I am so addicted to this sauce! I will definitely be making this all the time, so easy and soo amazing. mmmmm

This was sooooo good! Like others, as the sauce was cooking I wasn't too sure about the vinegar, but it tasted divine, with a unique sweetness to it! My husband took one bite and quickly commented on how good it was, and, he went in for seconds!!! I had never cooked with shallots before, but loved the flavor it added. It does take some work, but well worth it! We also had the Roasted Potatoes and Peppers (no Sausage), and oh my, yummy!!!

i made this tonight and it was SO good!!! my bf and i were questioning the vinegar as it was reducing and i didn't add any wine to it but replaced it with a bit more broth and it turned out amazing! i made cabbage, cauliflower and carrots with it and a bit of the sauce with those were amazing as well!thanks so much Gina, great as usual!!

Made this today with a couple of substitutes using just what I had in the house. So, I used thinly sliced onions instead of shallots, thickened the sauce with corn starch instead of tomato paste, and apple cider vinegar replaced red wine vinegar, also left out the sour cream. I put baby carrots in the pan while it was simmering. Next time maybe I'll shop for the ingredients but this was really great even with the subs. Thanks!

I made this tonight and I have to say I absolutely love it! I used olive oil instead of butter and used fat-free sour cream. The only issue I had was that the sauce didn't thicken...but no matter because it was still fabulous!

I made my version of this tonight and it was fabulous! I didn't have honey, so subbed agave, used onion instead of shallot, and fat-free greek yogurt instead of the sour cream (which I always do). It was fabulous!

I have made this recipe 3 times. It is very good. I dip my chicken thighs in flour and this helps brown the meat and thicken the sauce. I used olive oil and added portabella mushrooms. I used Marsala wine (that's what I had). The red wine vinegar really adds a depth to the sauce. Bon appetit quality.

I just made this tonight. I didn't have red wine vinegar so I used white wine vinegar. Also, I totally forgot to add sour cream. The whole thing turned out great! Next time I will try to follow the recipe, but it's nice to know I can't screw it up! I love all your recipes!

Just wanted to say I am cooking this again tonight. I think I made this well over a year ago. I wanted to make something different and I normally stick to your chicken curry. But lately we have been having a lot of potatoes. So I went through your page and found this one. So I will make this tonight with some white rice and a salad. I just love love your site. I normally 6 outta 7 days cook from your site. :)

Made this the other night and it was AMAZING! Honestly one of the best chicken dishes I have ever eaten, even in a restaurant. I made it exactly as stated, except I added in a bit of sliced onion since my shallots didn't come quite to 3/4 cup, and I used a mixture of vinegars since I didn't realize I was low on red wine (added a bit of cider and a bit of white wine). I thought the sour cream really did add something - it made the sauce just a bit more velvety and smooth in the mouth. Next time I think I will saute some mushrooms as well as others have stated. Thanks for a fantastic recipe!

My one question: do you think it would work to do the prep work for this on the stove (preparing the sauce and sauteing the chicken), then put the sauce on top and finish it in the oven? It would be a great company dish but I usually prefer not to stand over the stove at the last minute when I have people over. Just wondering if you or anyone else has tried this?

This was amazing, VERY tasty, my husband and daughter raved about it. A definite keeper, wouldn't change a thing! I've made so many of your recipes and haven't commented until now, I need to play catch up! Thanks so much, you've helped me to enjoy cooking!

Unreal recipe. I'll definitely add this to my repertoire, and it can created on a budget which is always a plus. I didn't have vinegar handy, instead just a ton of leftover red wine so I used that for both the white wine and vinegar components, which probably took the meal in a different direction, but I was happy with it. LOVED the flavor from the sour cream, and was pleasantly surprised with how rich the whole meal tasted for how little fat it contained. Paired with sweet potatoes and peasant bread, can't wait for leftovers tomorrow!

Hey Gina! Made this tonight and we loved it! Curious to know what size/weight pack of thighs you typically look for? I feel really full and it was so tasty I'm guessing I over ate my "allowed" portion! Want to make sure I'm accounting for my points! Thanks!

I made this Saturday night and WOW was it fantastic! Like several other reviewers said, I was a bit nervous about the vinegar, but it cooked down to be the most amazingly savory, flavorful sauce. Definitely going on our rotation!

Made this last night for the second time to rave reviews. It is going permanently on my "people are coming over for dinner, what should I make?" List. Only swap was red wine for the white because that was what was in my fridge. Thank you so much!